Witnesses at Hemp Hearing Provide New Industry Update

Cindy Zimmerman

Two panels provided an update on “Hemp Production and the 2018 Farm Bill” during a hearing before the Senate Agriculture Committee on Thursday.

The first panel consisted of representatives from USDA, EPA and FDA who gave reports on how their respective agencies are working on implementation. USDA Under Secretary Greg Ibach, EPA Assistant Administrator Alexandra Dunn, and FDA Principal Deputy Commissioner of Food and Drugs Dr. Amy Abernethy each presented testimony on the progress and challenges in implementing the law. Ibach reported that USDA has been working diligently to establish the program and issue regulations in time for the 2020 crop year.

Listen to their opening comments here:
Senate Ag Committee hearing on Hemp Production panel 1

The second panel included Kentucky hemp farmer Brian Furnish, National Hemp Association executive director Erica Stark, and Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians Tribal Chairman Darrell G. Seki, Sr. who all talked about the opportunities presented by the production of hemp and the need for clear regulations moving forward.

I thank you for making this wonderful crop legal,” said Furnish. “But now what the hemp growers need and want is for this new and valuable crop to be just that, a crop, with the same opportunities to grow and fill the marketplace with new and valued products.”

Listen to their opening comments here:
Senate Ag Committee hearing on Hemp Production panel 2

AgWired Precision, Audio, Cannabis, hemp

Senate Ag Committee Leaders Voice Hemp Support

Cindy Zimmerman

The Senate Committee on Agriculture got an update on “Hemp Production and the 2018 Farm Bill” Thursday with clear support from the leadership.

Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) said while there are cautions regarding this new crop, ‘I am extremely supportive of new opportunities for farmers. It is not often that an almost entirely new crop with this level of interest and market potential comes along.”

Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) related the long history of hemp growing in this country and said “this new old crop is creating exciting opportunities for farmers and the greater supply chain.”

Hemp products are already popular in the U.S. marketplace. Nationally it is estimated that U.S. hemp retail sales are at more than $700 million annually, and this market is expected to grow at a 10% to 20% rate.

The senator most responsible for getting hemp legislation in the Farm Bill is Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, and he attended the hearing to make his own comments and introduce hemp farmer Brian Furnish of Cynthiana, Kentucky as a witness. McConnell says hemp is a really big deal in his state of Kentucky. “In just six months of legalization, we’re now growing it in 101 of 120 counties,” said McConnell.

Listen to opening remarks from all three senators here:
Senate Ag Committee hearing on Hemp Production opening remarks

Audio, Cannabis, hemp

Zimfo Bytes 7/26

Carrie Muehling

  • The Minnesota Industrial Hemp Association (MIHA), a non-profit trade association based in Shakopee, MN, has been formed to ensure that opportunities for Cannabidiol (CBD) and other products derived from industrial hemp continue to grow and be readily available for consumers.
  • AgTech Nexus USA, NewLeaf Symbiotics and Joyn Bio announced a long-term partnership valued at up to $75M to bring innovation and sustainability to modern agriculture with a new class of microbes that benefit crop health and protection.
  • The Manure Challenge, organized by Yield Lab Institute with guidance from the World Wildlife Fund, Newtrient, and the Dairy Farmers of America, brings together the expertise of many eminent public, for profit, and non-for-profit leaders from a wide variety of backgrounds to support interest and investment in the manure management sector. The following organizations have joined the effort as sponsors: Cargill, The Maschhoffs, and WeWork FoodLabs.
  • Sipcam Agro USA announced that it has named John Gertz to lead its North American business as Chief Executive Officer, reporting to the board of directors and the Company’s Global Chief Executive Officer, Giovanni Affaba.
  • American Agri-Women proudly presented the 2019 Champion of Agriculture Award to Congresswoman Cheri Bustos of Illinois and Congressman David Rouzer of North Carolina during its annual Fly-In in Washington, D.C. in June.
  • The National Pork Board named Jerry Flint as vice president of engagement and outreach effective August 1, 2019.
  • As part of its longstanding partnership with the National Press Foundation, Bayer announced its sponsorship of two educational programs focused on agriculture and cardiovascular disease. Each training will take place over a course of three to four days and provide journalists the educational tools and resources needed for these critical topics.
  • The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture has awarded nearly $9,000 in mini-grants to 10 communities across the nation through the White-Reinhardt Fund for Education program. The grants are used to create new agricultural literacy projects or expand existing efforts; the Foundation strives to help learners of all ages understand agriculture and the important role it plays in their daily lives.
  • Costco’s Craig Wilson is the new president of The Center for Food Integrity Board of Directors.
  • To more effectively meet the growing needs of family farmers and ranchers, National Farmers Union Foundation has refocused its general farm education programs around the Farm and Ranch Business Health Assessment and a new Farm Business Toolbox.
  • National Crop Insurance Services has launched a new website at CropInsurance101.org that aims to be an easily-accessible resource where visitors can learn more about the history of crop insurance, download fact sheets, or find a glossary of common terms.
Zimfo Bytes

USDA Officials Provide Details of Support Package for Farmers

Cindy Zimmerman

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and other agency officials today announced further details of the $16 billion package “aimed at supporting American agricultural producers while the Administration continues to work on free, fair, and reciprocal trade deals.”

In May, President Trump directed Secretary Perdue to craft a relief strategy in line with the estimated impacts of unjustified retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agricultural goods and other trade disruptions. The Market Facilitation Program (MFP), Food Purchase and Distribution Program (FPDP), and Agricultural Trade Promotion Program (ATP) will assist agricultural producers while President Trump works to address long-standing market access barriers.

Secretary Perdue was joined by Under Secretary Bill Northey; Acting Deputy Under Secretary Brandon Lipps; and USDA’s Chief Economist, Dr. Rob Johannson to explain the details of the package, which will help producers of a wide variety of commodities impacted by trade disruptions.

USDA provides new trade aid details

Agricultural organizations reacted positively to the announcement. “While we are grateful for the continuing support for American agriculture from President Trump and Secretary Perdue, America’s farmers ultimately want trade more than aid. It is critically important to restore agricultural markets and mutually beneficial relationships with our trading partners around the world,” said American Farm Bureau Federation president Zippy Duvall.

Under the plan, eligible U.S. pork producers will receive $11 per head based on inventory between April 1-May 15, 2019 and USDA will make pork purchases of $208 million to support its programs for the food insecure. National Pork Producers Council President David Herring says they “are grateful to the Trump administration for providing partial relief as hog farmers have incurred significant losses due to trade disputes that have lingered for more than a year.”

National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) President Lynn Chrisp says farmers definitely need aid at this time. “It’s no secret that farmers are facing difficult decisions amid wet spring weather, trade disputes and tariffs, and demand destruction in the ethanol market. While NCGA’s focus remains markets, we welcome USDA’s quick rollout of MFP 2.0 and the Department’s creative efforts to reorient MFP to better reflect market impacts and support American farmers. We look forward to learning more about how MFP will work for corn farmers.”

AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, Audio, NCGA, NPPC, USDA

InfoAg Featured Exhibitor – EFC Systems

Cindy Zimmerman

For over 30 years, EFC Systems has delivered innovative software solutions throughout the entire agribusiness supply chain, and the company was on-hand at the InfoAg Conference this year to share their latest tips on “Improving Your Farmgate Conversations” and “Data Interoperability.”

Jeremy Wilson just joined EFC Systems as Senior Vice President, Field Data Solutions, in February of this year. He is responsible for the FieldAlytics and AgSolver solutions.

In this interview, he talks about what what’s new with EFC Systems and how they are helping improve agribusiness efficiency.
2019 InfoAg Conference - Interview with Jeremy Wilson, EFC Systems

2019 InfoAg Conference Photo Album

AgWired Precision, Audio, data, Info Ag, Precision Agriculture

Precision Ag Bytes 7/24

Carrie Muehling

  • At AgTech Nexus USA, NewLeaf Symbiotics and Joyn Bio announced a long-term partnership valued at up to $75M to bring innovation and sustainability to modern agriculture with a new class of microbes that benefit crop health and protection.
  • AgReliant Genetics and SlantRange announced a partnership to integrate SlantRange’s Aerial Phenotyping solution into the AgReliant seed breeding technology platform.
  • New Leader Manufacturing unveiled the NL5000 G5 Crop Nutrient Applicator for the Dot Autonomous Robotic farming system at the Ag In Motion show.
  • Geosys announces the availability of maps from its Croptical® farm monitoring tool through the John Deere Operations Center. By integrating the satellite data from the Croptical tool with the Ag production data on Operations Center, users will be able to quickly detect changes in the field – often before visible signs appear.
  • Raven Industries has expanded its logistics and control offering to help ag retailers find more efficiency, and profitability, in their custom application operations. Featuring the integrated suite of AgSync™, Slingshot® and the Viper® 4+ software and hardware; Raven’s Connected Workflow™ allows users to seamlessly and wirelessly connect their office to the field and back again.
  • At AgTech Nexus USA, NewLeaf Symbiotics and Joyn Bio announced a long-term partnership valued at up to $75M to bring innovation and sustainability to modern agriculture with a new class of microbes that benefit crop health and protection.
  • The International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium announced that BASF has joined the organization as a sponsoring partner.
  • Case IH is introducing the new Flex Hoe™ 900 air drill, which is agronomically designed to help producers efficiently seed small grains, no matter the ground conditions. New for 2020, this model expands the Flex Hoe series of hoe air drills with a durable seeding solution that provides operators the flexibility to make quick adjustments across changing terrains.
  • Nufarm Americas Inc. announced that Trunemco, its new seed-applied nematode management technology, is now approved in 28 states. More states are pending and updates on new state registrations can be viewed at nufarm.com/uscrop/trunemco.
  • Time is running out and seats are filling up quickly for the Conservation in Action Tour hosted by the Conservation Technology Information Center, which will be held in central Iowa August 20 and 21. Registration for the event closes at midnight on July 26. Online registration is available at https://www.ctic.org/cia_tour/registration.
  • Agricultural Retailers Association President and CEO Daren Coppock says they are pleased to see EPA render a science-based decision on the crop protection product chlorpyrifos. “Chlorpyrifos is a very important tool for controlling insects, resulting in producing healthy and attractive produce for consumers. Thousands of studies support responsible use of this product and vouch for its safety when used according to label directions, and EPA’s periodic registration reviews ensure that this product and others will regularly be reviewed with the best-available science.” Click here to read more from EPA on this topic.
AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes

PrecisionAg Presents Excellence Awards

Cindy Zimmerman

The recipients of this year’s PrecisionAg® Awards of Excellence were honored at the 2019 InfoAg Conference in St. Louis on Tuesday. The awards recognize outstanding individuals who have demonstrated exceptional work in the use and adoption of precision agriculture technologies and practices.

The 2019 award winners are:
Crop Adviser/Entrepreneur Award – Brittany Ullrich, Winfield United.
Educator/Researcher Award – Wesley Porter, Ph.D., University of Georgia
Farmer Award – Brent Rendel, Miami, OK
Legacy Award – Brett Whelan, University of Sydney, Australia
Special Legacy Award – Dave Junge, Junge Control (posthumously)

Whelan accepted the award by video, while Junge’s wife Mary, Vice President/CFO of Junge Control, accepted on behalf of the innovator behind the mixing and blending systems developed by Junge Control who passed away from pancreatic cancer in May of this year.

2019 InfoAg Conference - PrecisionAg Awards of Excellence Presentation

2019 InfoAg Conference - PrecisionAg Award winners panel discussion

2019 InfoAg Conference Photo Album

AgWired Precision, Audio, Info Ag, Precision Agriculture

Peanuts as a Superfood

Cindy Zimmerman

GA Peanut Commission’s Joy Crosby with Parker Wallace at 2019 SPGC

Did you know that peanuts are a “superfood”? Well, since a “superfood” is defined as a nutrient-rich food that is beneficial for health and well-being, peanuts naturally qualify.

Author of Parker’s Plate and lover of food, Parker Wallace talked about the role of peanuts as a superfood and showcased her Thai Quinoa and Peanut Salad recipe at the 2019 Southern Peanut Growers Conference last weekend in Panama City Beach.

Learn about Parker’s love for peanuts in this interview and her remarks on the panel.

2019 SPGC Interview with Parker Wallace, Parker's Plate

2019 SPGC panel - Parker Wallace, Parker’s Plate

Check out the Southern Peanut Growers Conference Blog for more content from SPGC.

2019 Southern Peanut Growers Conference Photo Album

Audio, Peanuts, SPGC

Animal Ag Bites 7/22

Carrie Muehling

  • Alltech recently continued its commitment to student research and agricultural innovation by presenting the 36th Alltech Student Research Manuscript Award to Maria K. Arendt, who recently received her Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. The award was presented during the 108th annual Poultry Science Association meeting, held in Montreal, Quebec, on July 15–18.
  • Ariana Negreiro was recently selected as the Vita Plus dairy nutrition and management fellowship student at Michigan State University. Negreiro is the sixth student to participate in the program.
  • PMI announces the addition of Kevin DeHaan, Ph.D., to its team as a regional account sales manager. In this role, DeHaan will provide technical support to cattle producers and feedlot managers in the western United States.
  • California adopted USDA’s Federal Milk Marketing Order system of pricing and pooling milk on Nov. 1, 2018, resolving price disparities between California and the rest of the United States. According to a new report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange division, the FMMO did not change the underlying market forces that determine what milk produced in California is worth. It only nudged the regulated price higher and added safety valves to pay milk under class prices if supply exceeds demand.
  • Idaho families struggling with hunger just got a big boost from Dairy West. The organization, which represents Idaho and Utah dairy farmers, recently donated a new refrigerated truck to The Idaho Foodbank to increase the nonprofit’s ability to safely store milk and other perishable food products and deliver them to food pantries throughout the Gem State.
  • Zoetis Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire Platinum Performance, a privately held, nutrition-focused animal heath company. Platinum’s premium nutritional product formulas and unique approach to the field of scientific wellness for horses, dogs and cats will further strengthen and diversify Zoetis’ portfolio in the equine and petcare markets. Financial terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.
AgWired Animal, Animal Bites

Georgia Congressman Addresses 2019 SPGC

Cindy Zimmerman

Georgia Republican Congressman Drew Ferguson spoke to the 2019 Southern Peanut Growers Conference on Saturday about a number of topics important to farmers. Elected to Congress in 2016, Rep. Ferguson represents the third district of Georgia, southwest of Atlanta, and serves on the House Ways and Means committee.

The congressman discussed trade issues, disaster aid, rural broadband and the crazy that is Washington DC these days. Listen and watch below.

2019 SPGC Rep. Drew Ferguson (R-GA) remarks

2019 SPGC Rep. Drew Ferguson (R-GA) interview


2019 Southern Peanut Growers Conference Photo Album

Audio, Peanuts, SPGC, Video